So Glastonbury festival - that's all about stadium rock, hippies, warm cider and torrential rain, isn't it? Well not anymore. Sure enough, back in 1970 when dairy farmer Michael Eavis had the foresight to stage his first festival at Worthy Farm, psychedelic folk rockers T-Rex topped the bill. There was probably warm cider consumed. It may well have rained (it usually does). But 40 years on, you're just as likely to catchy a grime MC as a mud-caked hippy or a drum'n'bass set as a rhythm 'n' blues combo.
That's the real beauty of Glastonbury. It continues to reflect the morphing landscape of music. Of course, there's still a rich seam of guitar-led bands - they are the bedrock of the festival– but the myriad of stages and ever evolving dance arena means that you could spend the entire weekend without hearing the jarring scream of a distorted guitar solo.
Two years ago Jay-Z's defining set made a mockery of Noel Gallagher's sour graped jibe - "Sorry, but Jay-Z, I'm not fucking having him at Glastonbury." The indie rock snobs might have turned their noses up at the prospect of a rap act sullying the sacred Avalon fields but the delirious crowd reaction said it all. Hip-hop is here to stay.
So this year there was only one place for Black Sheep to be on Friday – the Pyramid stage to catch Snoop Dogg playing his first set on UK soil for four years. And Tha Doggfather didn't disappoint one of the biggest crowds of the weekend. Sporting white vest, white sunglasses, pigtails and a blinged up crystal-clad microphone replete with diamond Snoop Dogg knuckleduster, a skinnier than normal Snoop played a heavyweight hits set that had the crowd bouncing from opener 'The Next Episode' to 'Who Am I (What's My Name)? Temperatures soared as Snoop brought a little piece of Long Beach to Pilton; his set also including a touching tribute to Tupac, Tinie Tempah making a guest appearance for his 'Pass Out' and a cover of House of Pain's 'Jump around'. The US rapper well and truly wowed the crowd, and for Black Sheep the highlight had to be 'Drop It Like It's Hot' under the baking late afternoon sun, along with the classic 'Gin and Juice'.
Next stop Gorillaz. Bono's back trouble meant that U2 couldn't honour their commitment so somebody else had to step into the breach with just four weeks to go. Cue Albarn and Co. And while sad rock heads snorted their derision, to be honest Black Sheep was secretly chuffed. How did they fare? Pretty damn good. Yes, there was the odd technical hiccough but Albarn's multimedia show pressed all the right buttons. However, when album opener 'Welcome To The World Of The Plastic Beach' came on with just a video of Snoop singing his cameo, we felt a little cheated. Had our hero retired to his teepee (our sources discovered it contained twin plasmas and an X-box – how cool is that?!) for a spot of R'n'R? Maybe. But good things come to those that wait and thankfully Snoop reappeared for a fantastic finale of 'Clint Eastwood'. Blend in guest appearances from Bobby Womack, De La Soul, Bashy and Kano and you've got the recipe for a perfect summer evening.
Saturday's highlight was the Funkmeister extraordinaire George Clinton with his Parliament/Funkadelic hybrid. Sampled by any rapper with an ounce of soul, Clinton is the godfather of space funk and this amazing set blew us away. His granddaughter Sativa singing 'Something stank an' I want some' will stay in the memory for years. If you don't know their stuff, check it out; you won't be disappointed.
Sunday was all about Stevie Wonder. A true legend. Stevie's got such an extensive back catalogue that he could have played for the whole festival. We were treated to a showman at the top of his game. From the moment he strolled on to the stage with his keytar, to the 'Happy Birthday' singalong with Michael Eavis, this was a chance to witness one of the true greats,
